European journal of emergency medicine : official journal of the European Society for Emergency Medicine
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Patient safety in emergency departments: a problem for health care systems? An international survey.
Patient safety in healthcare is one of the cornerstones of quality of care. The emergency department (ED) is by its very nature a place where errors and safety issues are liable to occur. ⋯ This survey highlighted that most health professionals identify the ED as an environment with specific safety issues. The main factors appeared to be a shortage of personnel during busy periods, overcrowding due to boarding, and a perceived lack of support from hospital management.
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Multicenter Study
Effect of age on the association between the Glasgow Coma Scale and the anatomical brain lesion severity: a retrospective multicentre study.
Background and importance Older adults are at higher risk of undertriage and mortality following a traumatic brain injury (TBI). Early identification and accurate triage of severe cases is therefore critical. However, the Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) might lack sensitivity in older patients. ⋯ Older adults had increased odds of mortality compared to their younger counterparts at all AIS-head levels: AIS-head = 3 [odds ratio (OR) = 2.9, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.6-5.5], AIS-head = 4, (OR = 2.7, 95% CI 1.6-4.7) and AIS-head = 5 (OR = 2.6, 95% CI 1.9-3.6) TBI (all P < 0.001). Similar results were found among patients with multiple trauma. Conclusions In this study, among TBI patients with similar AIS-head score, there was a significant higher median GCS in older patients compared to younger patients.